Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $66.79.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on EVRG. Guggenheim raised shares of Evergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Evergy from $62.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Evergy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $59.00 to $68.50 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Evergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. National Pension Service acquired a new position in Evergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Evergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Evergy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new position in Evergy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.24% of the company’s stock.

Evergy Price Performance

Evergy stock opened at $65.06 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $64.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.54. The company has a market capitalization of $14.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.62. Evergy has a 1 year low of $49.55 and a 1 year high of $69.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.55.

Evergy (NASDAQ:EVRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.24 billion. Evergy had a net margin of 14.77% and a return on equity of 8.77%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Evergy will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Evergy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6675 per share. This represents a $2.67 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Evergy’s payout ratio is currently 70.45%.

About Evergy

Evergy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity in the United States. The company generates electricity through coal, landfill gas, uranium, and natural gas and oil sources, as well as solar, wind, other renewable sources. It serves residences, commercial firms, industrials, municipalities, and other electric utilities.